Noisey– There’s nothing quite like the sweet, visceral melodrama of being a teenager in love. You write letters, you construct mixtapes, and you truly believe that your class crush will be your one and only for life – which is why every posession they’ve passed on to you is stored in a shoebox under your bed. Then, as it goes, you become sceptical, jaded, and your cold adult heart turns to stone. You move on after leaving school and watch each other grow fatter and older on Facebook. In the process you debate your life choices and wonder why you fancied someone who now earnestly shares posts from LadBible. That’s just how it goes, right? For one woman, not so much. Her own high school sweetheart was Tupac Shakur – meaning that A) he cannot be forgotten and B) the private love letters that he poured his heart and soul into can now be put up for sale for $35,000 (around £25,000). Which is good, at least for her, I guess? The letter, which was written in 1988, is a page long and is addressed to “Beethoven”, which is what Tupac called the woman because of her piano skills. “Tupac and I were in drama class together,” the classmate wrote in a statement. “He was one of the only black kids in drama so he stood out. But he stood out for other reasons too… everything else I read about Tupac seemed to me to be a different person. I didn’t know the man who tattooed ‘Thug Life’ on his body and who was gunned down on a Las Vegas street. I never really cared for the music he created – it was nothing like the freestyles I remember in front of our school. I knew the kid who made me understand Shakespeare and who didn’t care that he dressed different or wore his hair different. I knew the kid who loved Prince and candles and had a broken heart. And the kid who drew birds lying upside-down on the notes that he passed in school.”

Dear Beethoven

[Eyeball] felt (compelled?) 2 write u. [eyeball] can’t really explain it, but i really feel good vibes from u. Im almost sure we’ll be very close friends. [eyeball] would have never guessed that u+[eyeball] would be Friends. But as the old saying goes….wait, how does that saying go? Forget it! u get the [pointed object/pencil]! [Eyeball] want u 2 know that u can tell me anything and if u ever need a shoulder 2 cry [eyeballs leaking water] on, u can [crying eyeballs] on mine. [eyeball] have so many good thoughts about what lies ahead 4 us and it is my hope that they all come (thru/true?) As u will soon find out, [eyeball] do not _______ words, [eyeball] saw whats feel. so if something [eyeball] say scares u please don’t panic because [eyeball] tend 2 get over emotional. My [non anatomically correct heart] usually leads me 2 fast and thts probably why [eyeball] always get hurt. So if it ever seems as though I’m moving 2 fast please slow me down! Talking 2 u on the [corded telephone] was such a good feeling 4 me. [eyeball] was beginning 2 feel alone & out of the blue, [eyeball] meet u & its almost like i’ve known u 4 years. we have so much in common. We both [Love] Prince. We have both had [Broken non anatomical heart] and we both adore candles! WHAT ELSE COULD [EYEBALL] Ask 4! C u 2morrow Beethoven!

P.s. My [clunky outdated telephone] #332=4725

4 ETERNITY

TUPAC SHAKUR.

Im not exactly endorsing the 35k price tag, but if you told me $34,999, I’d have to at least scramble my brain and consider buying this letter right? I mean here we have one of the most famous dead rappers spilling his soul out to this chick. One of the most famous poets/lyricist ever. And honestly I want it because it reminds me that Tupac wasn’t a crazy evil dude who thought the world was out to get him. When you ask people now a days who they thought Tupac was as a person, they’d probably say the guy spitting at photographers and giving the media the bird in a red wings jersey and doing gang related stuff to Biggie and the whole Bad Boy crew. But thats just not the case. Dude was a lover before a fighter and people forget that. I mean read the words he wrote. Dude was a soulful cat who often scared away girls because of how over emotional the guy got. Like a Shakespearean poet. Not to mention a visionary too. I mean the whole letter is loaded with eyeball and heart emojis before emojis were a thing. Sure the kids are doing it now to try to get chicks wet and slap eggplants with peaches over text, but tupac drew out hearts and telephone emojis to genuinely try to fall in love. You won’t get that dedication by some regular old cat.